You should get to know ... Lynn Schreder

KHI Financial Solutions, Fort Dodge, West Des Moines, Webster City

Nov. 12, 2013

Schreder / SPECIAL TO THE REGISTER

Job description: As an owner with two partners and co-president of a company we purchased in 2009, I focus on expanding KHI’s capabilities to successfully make the health care reform transition. I lead the employees in Fort Dodge and am the point of contact supporting a 400-plus agent team. To stay connected with the day-to-day issues and experiences faced by consumers, I continue to meet with individuals, families and small businesses to write health insurance.

Background: I grew up in Cedar Rapids and graduated with a B.S. in industrial education from Iowa State, where I was a three-year letter-winner on the softball team. I was a high school teacher and coach in Wyoming before becoming an account executive for AT&T (Lucent/Avaya) in 1987. I led sales and customer service teams in the Midwest until 2002, when I became a marketing team leader and broker account manager at Wellmark Blue Cross and Blue Shield for more than five years.

Notable achievements: Because of my level of participation and support for women business owners, my company was the 2013 Corporate Partner of the Year for the National Association of Women Business Owners-Central Iowa chapter (NAWBO-CI). I also received six awards while part of AT&T/Lucent/Avaya.

Why I do what I do: Whether I am helping someone find the right health insurance plan, helping agents grow their businesses, supporting staff members as they develop their skills, educating small-business employers or mentoring fellow board members, I am doing what I was made to do: lead, encourage, train, support — it’s all about serving people.

What I do to get away from work: Golf, bike ride, walk my dogs, yard work, read — just unplug from technology and be outside enjoying nature’s beauty.

How I give back to the community: This is my third year as co-president of NAWBO-CI and I chaired that organization’s Women Mean Business Summit for three years, its Corporate Partners team for two years and its golf outing for three years. I’m a board member of the National Association of Financial Advisors-Iowa, the National Association of Health Underwriters- Iowa Chapter and the One Iowa Education Fund.

Best business book I’ve read lately: “The Rules of Woo: An Entrepreneur’s Guide to Capturing the Hearts & Minds of Today’s Customers” by Cindy Solomon, a woman I met at a national conference of NAWBO. Because companies will succeed only when they serve their clients and agents the way they want to be served, KHI gives copies to all employees and moves through Cindy’s “client-centric” process and business model with them to define what “serving our customers” looks like within KHI.

One thing I would change about the Des Moines area: Continue the downtown development that attracts people to participate in after-hours activities, continue to improve biking trails that encourage Iowans to get healthy, and, finally, improve support for small businesses in the form of tax relief and access to capital.

What Iowa can do to attract more people like me: Continue being a state that treats all citizens with respect and dignity and upholds our constitution that “government is instituted for the protection, security and benefit of the people.”

My leadership philosophy: Servant Leadership is the key to my leadership philosophy. When we focus on serving our employees and our employees focus on servicing our clients, we do the right things for the right reasons. We’re present, listening, caring and offering solutions that meet needs.

What I would do if I could do something else: In addition to owning KHI Financial Solutions, I am considering a run for public office. As a female owner of a small business, I am frustrated at the partisan politics that prevents the real work from getting done. I am committed to finding the common ground and compromising to achieve the necessary results.